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Impact of Wearing Face Masks at Schools

Impact of Wearing Face Masks at Schools

The opening of schools during the next pandemic phase is a hot topic of debate. They will have to be unlocked at some point. Masks are still required in certain Scottish secondary schools, according to sources. South Australia, on the other hand, has issued a new recommendation that people use N95 masks made in a proper N95 mask factory for both indoor and outdoor activities. In light of the current situation, we'd like to draw your attention to a few key points that are rarely discussed:

Bilateral Headache:

kids masks and headache

In a recent study, 150+ health care professionals wearing surgical masks for prolonged periods got affected from bilateral headaches, however, when removed mask for 30mins, the pain disappeared spontaneously. So, this issue comes with a solution too. However, in certain cases, people suffered from perioral dermatitis with rashes and redness, an infection of the skin caused due to sweat, saliva breathed into the surrounding areas.

Higher humidity:

kids masks and humidity

In another recent study it was found out that when a group of 5 fit males and 5 fit females did a workout on the treadmill wearing N95 masks manufactured by a reputed N95 mask factory, it caused high humidity and high temperature within the mask. So, children while playing and involved in physical activities should use surgical masks over N95 masks.

Impair face recognition & Face identification:

masks and kids

A snugly fitted mask covers the entire lower part of the face, making face recognition and face identification next to impossible. A youngster at school enjoys social attractions, and it is difficult to identify people with the mask on. However, there are several simple alternatives, such as user name tags, stature, body form, and posture to distinguish men and women.

Miscommunication:

Facial expressions are the most typical means of communication. When a youngster wears a tight-fitting mask, he or she has trouble understanding the sounds and conversations around them. The speaker's voice is muffled, resulting in human errors.

Block emotional signalling:

masks block emotional signalling

Emotions have an important role in social relationships. A mask prevents the expression of positive or negative emotions such as a grin or a scowl. A partially visible face's expressions might be deceiving. As a result, in an ideal school situation, it is more difficult to tell the difference between a genuine smile and distaste.

To mask or not to mask

Despite so many discussions, the British Medical Association has strongly recommended adults and children for the continuous usage of masks. It is important to continue wearing masks at all costs. Let us see why:

  1. Indoor Masking: There is proven evidence that most of the infections happen while you stay indoors, where people stay close together and they often share masks.
  2. Not a replacement: These PPE masks act as protection to wearers from symptomatic and asymptomatic people.
  3. Virus transmission: Some of the new COVID variants are too much transmissible. As many of us are still not vaccinated, so, it is advised by the medical council to wear a mask at all times